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Almine Rech

Genieve Figgis What we do in the shadows

Jun 3 — Jul 29, 2017 | Brussels
Inquire about the exhibition: inquiries@alminerech.com

Genieve Figgis is a consummate storyteller. Using paint rather than words, her deeply narrative works—often conjuring characters and settings out of the Edwardian age of the Anglo-Irish aristocracy—fit snugly within this long tradition of Irish cultural production. While it may seem essentialist, if not a political minefield, to overemphasize national identity in critical discussions of Figgis’ work, it could be argued that what distinguishes her use of figuration from the slew of contemporary painters is a distinctive translation of the Irish “blarney” into a pictorial form. What theorists such as Eagleton wrote of nineteenth century Irish writers such as Oscar Wilde’s ambivalent relationship to Britannia could easily applied to Figgis’ own work: both conjure Anglo-Irish society at the cusp of Irish independence. A world that is infused with qualities of “violence, travesty, affection, complicity, mimicry, subversion, mutual mystification.”

- Text by Alison M. Gingeras

Press release

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Selected artworks

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      What we do in the shadows, 2017

    Genieve Figgis What we do in the shadows, 2017

    Acrylic on canvas
    60 x 80 x 4 cm
    23 5/8 x 31 1/2 x 1 5/8 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Castle bed, 2017

    Genieve Figgis Castle bed, 2017

    Acrylic on panel
    40 x 50 cm
    15 3/4 x 19 5/8 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Las Meninas (after Velázquez), 2017

    Genieve Figgis Las Meninas (after Velázquez), 2017

    Acrylic on canvas
    50 x 40 cm
    19 5/8 x 15 3/4 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Las Meninas (after Velázquez), 2017

    Genieve Figgis Las Meninas (after Velázquez), 2017

    Acrylic on canvas
    50 x 40 cm
    19 5/8 x 15 3/4 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Blow job, 2017

    Genieve Figgis Blow job, 2017

    Acrylic on canvas
    40 x 50 cm
    15 3/4 x 19 5/8 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Napoleon, 2017

    Genieve Figgis Napoleon, 2017

    Acrylic on panel
    60 x 80 x 4 cm
    23 5/8 x 31 1/2 x 1 5/8 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Castle by day, 2017

    Genieve Figgis Castle by day, 2017

    Acrylic on canvas
    165 x 202 x 3,5 cm
    65 x 79 1/2 x 1 3/8 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Castle at night, 2017

    Genieve Figgis Castle at night, 2017

    Acrylic on canvas
    165 x 202 x 3,5 cm
    65 x 79 1/2 x 1 3/8 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Sunday ladies, 2016, 2016

    Genieve Figgis Sunday ladies, 2016, 2016

    Acrylic on canvas
    80 x 100 x 4 cm
    31 1/2 x 39 3/8 x 1 5/8 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Couple Under a rainbow with a pink Unicorn, 2016

    Genieve Figgis Couple Under a rainbow with a pink Unicorn, 2016

    Acrylic on canvas
    60 x 80 x 4 cm
    23 5/8 x 31 1/2 x 1 5/8 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Up the blue stairs, 2017

    Genieve Figgis Up the blue stairs, 2017

    Acrylic on wood panel
    80 x 100 x 4 cm
    31 1/2 x 39 3/8 x 1 5/8 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Arty portrait, 2017

    Genieve Figgis Arty portrait, 2017

    Acrylic on canvas
    150 x 120 x 2 cm
    59 x 47 1/4 x 0 3/4 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Pink Stage, 2017

    Genieve Figgis Pink Stage, 2017

    Acrylic on canvas
    80 x 100 x 4 cm
    31 1/2 x 39 3/8 x 1 5/8 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Ensor & Friends, 2017

    Genieve Figgis Ensor & Friends, 2017

    Acrylic on canvas
    50 x 40 x 4 cm
    19 5/8 x 15 3/4 x 1 5/8 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Royal friend portrait, 2017

    Genieve Figgis Royal friend portrait, 2017

    Acrylic on canvas
    60 x 80 x 2 cm
    23 5/8 x 31 1/2 x 0 3/4 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Sunday drinks, 2017

    Genieve Figgis Sunday drinks, 2017

    Acrylic on canvas
    60 x 80 x 4 cm
    23 5/8 x 31 1/2 x 1 5/8 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Wedding portrait, 2017

    Genieve Figgis Wedding portrait, 2017

    Acrylic on canvas
    60 x 70 x 2 cm
    23 5/8 x 27 1/2 x 0 3/4 inches

  • Genieve Figgis,                                      Evening drink, 2017

    Genieve Figgis Evening drink, 2017

    Acrylic on canvas
    60 x 80 x 4 cm
    23 5/8 x 31 1/2 x 1 5/8 inches